I did not sign the petition (1) because I am not clear on the specifics and (2) I dont think petitions have any impact. They are sort of useless.
I really dont see that a petition is going to prevent future human rights abuses anywhere or encourage the US government to invade Cuba (the militaristic US is presently quite capable of fabricating its own reasons for invasion). Am I wrong?
We can compare Cuba to the Dominican Republic and conclude that working conditions in the former are better than in the latter. However does that condition preclude that we raise criticism of Cuba (or any other country that happens to have better working conditions than the Dominican Republic) when that nation commits an injustice? Are we only allowed to raise criticism in the privacy of our own homes-if at all- because to do otherwise would be "objectively" supporting US imperialism? Does it not follow from this that we should avoid making any public criticisms of any Third World country for fear that the US would immediately declare a humanitarian crisis in that country and invade for "humanitarian" purposes?
Many of us criticized Sadam Hussein, yet that did not prevent us from opposing the war/sanctions against Iraq. What's the difference between that stance and criticizing the cuban government?
You ask why the petition signers single out Cuba. However, Chomsky and others on that list have criticized many regimes, so I think it is unfair to say that the petitioners have pointed the finger at Cuba to the exclusion of other countries which have worse. Signing that petition does not imply that the signers think Cuba is the only or the worst regime.
-Thomas (finally weighing in)
===== <<Be like me! The Primal Mother, eternally creative, eternally impelling into life,
eternally drawing satisfaction from the ceaseless flux of phenomena.>>
-Nietzsche, "The Birth of Tragedy"
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